Move
by kwillads
Summary: Episode tag to 'Vegas'. By popular request I'm continuing this story for another chapter or two. Final chapter posted.
1. Chapter 1

Move

Author: kwillads

He knew he had to move. It was hot. The desert was hot and the flames coming from the burning silver streak trailer and truck were hot. It was getting hotter and hotter besides sitting next to his bullet riddled car with gasoline leaking was not a good idea. He needed to move. Move away from the car. Move away from the heat. Move away from the flames. He needed to move.

His mind was totally wrapped around the idea of moving. He couldn't believe his luck. Just a few minutes…had it been minutes? Seemed longer somehow. He'd never had luck before at anything. His silver gun clicked empty in his hand. The Wraith stood over him poised to do to him what he'd seen happen to eight others over the last three months since he was handed this case to investigate. His mind wondered if it hurt. Hurt having the life, the essence of who you were sucked from you. He was too shot up to care.

John heard the planes overhead. From the sound of their engines echoing off the sand hills they were in attack mode ready to make a bombing run or a strafing run at his position. He really needed to move. Needed to get further away. But he'd never been lucky. Not in his military career, not in his job, not at gambling. There were some people in the world that had luck dripping from every pore. There were some that had no luck at all and some that fell in between. He was the former, John Sheppard never had luck on his side.

The Wraith turned and ran. Leaving him sitting there whole, not withered to dust. He needed to move. Move away from the area but all he could do was duck. A wave of heat spread out, truck and trailer shrapnel fell from the sky like raindrops; burning raindrops in an already hot desert. John caught a glimpse of the two planes, leaving behind their destroyed target.

He had to move. His brain kept telling him to move. To get away from the heat. Away from the fuel dripping from his only possession, his beloved car. Rolling to his left knee he managed to push himself up on shaky legs to take a step or two before he found himself back on the sandy ground. He had to move. Had to get away from the heat. He pushed himself up once again only to stumble after taking another step. That was it. He had no more strength. Rolling onto his back he gave up. Gave up moving. Gave up trying to protect himself. And why shouldn't he? He couldn't protect others around him. He let the heat of the desert consume him. This was as good a place as any to die. He didn't deserve any better. After all he was a solitary man.

oOo

Pain laced through his body waking all the nerve endings. His shoulder screamed loud but his right abdomen screamed louder. He wanted to move. He remembered he had to move. Had to get away from the fire, the heat, the gasoline. He ground his teeth together in preparation to move. Even that little movement sent pain down his body. All he could remember was that he needed to move.

He tried again to roll over onto his hands and knees but he couldn't. Though the pain was great it was a hand on his good shoulder gently keeping him in place. A soft, caring voice whispering to him not to move. He stopped his pathetic struggle to move. He let darkness consume him.

Hours later, maybe days later he tried again. Climbing out of the darkness towards the light. This time he managed to open his eyes. A bright light shone over him. One could say it was blinding. He couldn't see much of his surroundings, just the bright light over him. He closed his eyes. He was not ready for the bright light. Not worthy of the bright light.

His next attempt he was more successful. Not only did he manage to open his eyes, but this time he saw a face looming over him. Half cast in shadow, half in that bright light. He knew that face had seen that face before. It was the coroner. The young, beautiful coroner that didn't look old enough to be out of high school. He was flat on his back looking up the light bright over him. The same light that he saw many times over autopsy tables.

John panicked. She was going to autopsy him. But he wasn't dead. Was he? The pain felt too real he had to be alive. He wasn't dead. He wasn't. He needed to move. Move away from here. From her. Move. Move he told himself. The monitors began relaying his stress. The heart monitor was the first to signal his beating heart pounding against his abused ribcage. As hard as it was he managed to coat his dry throat with what moisture he could muter. "I'm not dead." He stated. Doing his best to state a fact. The face of the coroner moved away replaced by that damn bright light that didn't allow him to see anything.

The coroner moved back over into view. "Detective, you'll be alright. I gave you something to calm you down. I don't need you to pull open your stitches. Lie still and don't move. You'll be okay." He felt something warm and gentle move up his left arm and soon the panic faded.

oOo

Clicking…click, clack, click, clack… John opened his eyes to see what was making that noise. He'd been hearing it for sometime but hadn't been able to wake up enough to investigate. Now that he was mostly awake he saw McKay sitting in a chair by his bed typing. The clicking noise was actually typing.

"Hey." John croaked out softly.

McKay set his laptop down before picking up a small orange cup with a straw. "Just a small sip. Jennifer said you could have a drink, but not too much." He said placing the end of the straw between John's lips.

"Thanks." The water was tepid, but still felt good going down. "Why you here?"

"Checking on your progress. You got yourself shot up pretty good. You've been out of it for nearly ten days."

Ten days? Wow. But that didn't explain why this McKay was sitting by his hospital bedside. Didn't he have aliens to catch or watch or whatever he did? Why was he here? What did he want? Why hadn't he moved on?

"Why?"

"Why? Well…I guess because I owe you. We owe you. You saved Earth. Although I specifically remember telling you 'not to engage' the enemy."

"Don't remember that."

"I'm also here to ask if you want a new job."

"Don't think so. But thanks." He needed to move on. Move to a new place. That's what he was doing when he figured out what that Wraith in the cell was talking about.

"Are you sure? Because you really could use our help. You know with three bullet holes in you and all that blood you lost. You don't have insurance since you quit being a Detective. I highly doubt that twenty-three hundred dollars would have paid for the bed you're on for one day, let alone ten so far. Jennifer says you're weeks away from being able to get around on your own. Your car is a total loss. You have nothing else. Your brother doesn't want anything to do with you. Mikey has been looking to collect too. So say yes. My organization could use someone of your talents."

John thought it over. McKay was right, he didn't have anything. Anyone. But what talents was McKay referring too? His talent for getting into debt, or his talent for making everyone around him miserable, including himself.

"Dr. McKay, are you disturbing my patient?" Dr. Jennifer Keller asked coming into the room.

"You're a doctor?" John asked turning his head back to McKay after watching the coroner…no doctor walk in.

"Not that kind of doctor. I'm a real doctor, of real science. I have several PhD.'s in the hard sciences like astrophysics. I leave the mumbo-jumbo of the soft sciences like medicine to Dr. Keller here. However, she did manage to put you back together again, just like Humpty-Dumpty."

John turned his head to Keller placing a grin on his face. "Thanks I guess."

"You're welcome Detective." Smiling back big and bright.

"John."

"You're welcome John."

"Enough already. So? What's your answer? You taking the job or not? Time is ticking."

He was moving on before. He just didn't know where. Taking McKay's job offer would give him something to do while he thought more about his situation. What he wanted, where he wanted to go from here. Looking up at McKay he answered. "Sure."

"Great. Jennifer is he ready?"

John looked between the two. Ready? Ready for what?

Jennifer nodded in affirmation.

"Ready for what McKay?" John asked.

"We're heading home." He shot back quickly. "Daedalus, we're ready. Three to beam."

John was about to say something snarky about the Star Trek reference but didn't have a chance. A bright light engulfed the three of them. When the light faded away he was in a gun metal gray room with bulkheads. Quite different from the white plastered walled room he just left.

"What is this? How'd…?"

"All in due time Sheppard." McKay managed to say before heading out of the small gray room leaving him and Dr. Keller behind.

"It's all right John. Rodney will be back to explain everything. Let's get you settled. We have a long journey ahead of us." She motioned for one of the attendants to help move his bed into a vacated section of the small room.

Long was the right word alright. Eighteen days on a space battleship flying through something called hyperspace between galaxies. Rodney had come back to explain everything. Although John didn't understand a lot of it. It wasn't until Rodney helped him to the bridge of the spaceship just before they landed on Atlantis that John really understood what Rodney had offered him.

He had definitely moved on.


	2. Chapter 2

Stargate SG-1 and Stargate: Atlantis, the characters and universe are the property of Stargate (II) Productions, Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, Gekko Productions and the Sci-Fi Channel. The content of this story is solely for entertainment purposes and no copyright infringement is intended.

**A/N: ** By popular demand a second installment to my episode tag to 'Vegas' that I titled 'Move'. This is mostly exposition. I think I can add at least one more, maybe two to tie up everything so John lives 'happily ever after'.

Move

Author: kwillads

Chapter 2

It was another four days before Jennifer…Dr. Keller let him out of the Atlantis infirmary. He'd spent eighteen days on a ship in its sickbay recovering from multiple gun shot wounds: one in his left shoulder and two in his abdomen. The two in his abdomen had done the most damage. Each bullet had pierced a vital organ. Because the bullets had traveled through his car before entering his body John ended up fighting off a high fever for most of the trip. His fever broke by day sixteen of his journey.

He was becoming restless and was finally allowed to walk around as long as he had someone with him at all times. On day seventeen Dr. McKay had come to escort him to the hanger bay showing off a bay full of experimental aircraft called F-302's. John found himself cautiously climbing a ladder next to an open cockpit to get a look inside. Once a pilot, always a pilot. Climbing those four stairs had done him in although the view from the top was fascinating. It was the most he had done in 3 weeks. Rodney wasted no time in taking him back to sickbay. He had one of John's arms wrapped around his shoulder while he wrapped the other one around the man's waste keeping him upright on the long walk back.

On day eighteen McKay came and got him again. Only this time instead of the hanger bay he found himself on the ships bridge looking out the front view port. The planet looked much like Earth. There was plenty of blue signifying water and the landmass was huge. It was nothing like John had even seen before. Realization was sinking in that he was not in Kansas anymore. The large ship broke through the cloud cover and there on the vast expanse of water sat a floating city. McKay called it Atlantis. He said it was the same city from myths and legends.

The room he was now entering was large. People were sitting around a rather large table that took up most of the space in room. John recognized only two people: Mr. Woolsey of the FBI and his doctor Jennifer Keller. Rodney had come to his assigned guest quarters to escort him to the meeting. Since John's release from the infirmary he had someone from the military chaperone his every move. He was told he wasn't under guard and could travel anywhere within the city. His guards or rather chaperones were most helpful answering his questions. Rodney pointed to a chair and John eased his battered but recovering body into the soft black leather.

"How are you feeling Mr. Sheppard?" Asked the FBI guy sitting at what John considered the head of the rather large table.

"Fine." He responded with a low graveled voice.

"Yes…well…Dr. Keller informs me you're doing rather well. I suppose you're wondering why you're here." Richard Woolsey announced.

"Not really. McKay offered me a job." That was the only reason he was here. The job offer. He was leaving everything behind. Moving on. But at the time he didn't know what he was moving on too…or towards. He just knew it was over for him in Vegas and he had to move on.

Woolsey was taken aback a little at the blunt statement. Composing himself as any good diplomat would he continued. "Let me introduce some people to you. You already know Dr. Keller, she is our Chief Medical Officer here. Next to her is Dr. Radek Zelenka, he is our Chief Science Officer here on Atlantis. Colonel Samantha Carter of the US Air Force. Col. Carter leads our primary gate team here in Pegasus. General Evan Lorne is the Military Commander here. I, myself, oversee the whole expedition. Teyla Emmagan and Ronon Dex are native to this galaxy and are members of Col. Carter's gate team along with Dr. McKay. After their worlds were destroyed by the Wraith they decided to join us in our cause."

John found it interesting as the FBI guy made introduction. This 'Atlantis' was a combination of military and civilian personnel from what he saw so far. It didn't take being a detective to notice the country of origin patch on the fronts of both the civilian and of the military uniforms. Over the last 2 days he'd counted twenty-three different countries so far. General Lorne looked way too young to have achieved the rank of General just like the medical doctor. And aliens. John chuckled at his own thought. He was sitting at a table with two aliens that looked much like humans…much like he did. Both were dressed in black military issue BDU gear. Dex sported a buzz cut like all new recruits back on Earth would and Ms. Emmagan kept her hair up off her collar in a bun like knot.

"Do you find something I said amusing Mr. Sheppard?"

"Oh…ah…just that I find it hard to believe that our government put an FBI agent in charge of an expedition. And not just any expedition but one in another galaxy." John carded his hand through his hair. A nervous habit he picked up long ago but as time passed John couldn't remember where or when.

"I don't work for the FBI Mr. Sheppard. That was just my cover story in case you did any checking. I work, or I should say, we all work for the CUA: Coalition for Universal Alliances. The CUA is made up of brilliant scientists and military from around the world working towards a fundamental action, a common goal. Back on Earth we have a governing body made up of representatives from around the globe. We came here to discover our lineage as well as our future. What we didn't expect to find was the Wraith."

"Well I'm not a scientist, nor am I in the military. So why am I here? Why the job offer?"

Before Woolsey could respond General Lorne spoke up. "Mr. Sheppard you were in the military. A Captain. Your record speaks for itself…"

"I know. I was a screw up. No need to remind me. I was there." John bit out bitterly.

"That's not what I saw when I read over your file. I saw an Air Force Officer willing to do whatever it took for the sake of the mission. Saving the people on the ground without regards for your own personal safety. I saw a military officer that had his hands tied one too many times keeping him from doing his sworn duty. You can fly almost any aircraft. If you decide to help us out and I'll tell you right now we can really use your help, you will be reinstated and promoted to Major. Over time you could be given your own gate team. What happened to you back on Earth is of no consequence to me."

"That's nice of you to say General, but I don't know if I could go through that again. Look, don't get me wrong. I'm thankful for what you did for me back there. You know…saving my life and all, but I don't think this is going to work out. I'm not who you think I am. I'm not that John Sheppard anymore."

McKay had been sitting quietly using his body as a buffer between John and the rest of the members seated around the table. "If you don't want back in the Air Force maybe you would consider working for me."

Doors on Atlantis had been automatically opening for him when he neared. He found himself on several occasions looking for the inferred sensor that sensed his approached but of all the times he stopped and stared he couldn't find it. It wasn't until Dr. McKay came to get him for his check-up in the infirmary that he was told about his DNA: a specific gene characteristic that had most of the scientists vying for John's attention.

John looked over at McKay. He was familiar with organizational charts, chain-of-command, evidentiary reports and police reports to know and understand the hierarchy of bureaucracy. So it puzzled him for a moment as to why McKay would want him to work for him. "Don't you mean Dr. Zelenka." John made it a statement and not a question.

"The only reason Zelenka is in charge of the science division is that I don't have enough time. I either go out on missions or stay here babysitting the scientists. I choose to go out on missions. I'm too valuable to end up as a babysitter. I told you back on Earth that I know everything there is to know about you. You could have been Mensa."

John's eyes opened wide at that announcement. Where ever McKay got his information he hadn't been wrong yet. He knew exactly how much money he had in the bank. That his car was his only prized possession. That he liked Johnny Cash music over all others. McKay even knew what gum he liked and he knew he owed Mikey over thirteen thousand dollars off the record. It shouldn't have surprised him that McKay knew he was a closet mathematician.

"Mr. Sheppard we value what you bring to the table. Dr. McKay would not have made the offer otherwise. You don't have to make a decision right now. Take a day or two to think about it. Get to know the people you'll be working with. Dr. Keller has not released you for any type of duty at this time due to your injuries so allow General Lorne to show you around the military and Dr. McKay can show you some of the labs. Explain what research is being done. If you have any questions please don't hesitate to ask."

"Thanks. I'll do that...just don't get your hopes up is all I'm saying."


	3. Chapter 3

Stargate SG-1 and Stargate: Atlantis, the characters and universe are the property of Stargate (II) Productions, Showtime/Viacom, MGM/UA, Double Secret Productions, Gekko Productions and the Sci-Fi Channel. The content of this story is solely for entertainment purposes and no copyright infringement is intended.

Move

Author: kwillads

Chapter 3

Seven months later found John running to the chair room.

The End.

A/N: To all my readers, I hope you enjoyed 'Move' as much as I enjoyed writing it. I leave John Sheppard's fate in this alternate universe to your loving, yet capable hands and minds.

Karen


End file.
